I just received the following note: "On January 11, 2008 KFUO FM aired The World Beloved: A Bluegrass Mass, which included wording that described God as a woman."

Rather than merely cut and past the contents of the email, I took a couple minutes to check the veracity of its claims and dug up some links for you to follow.

You can see the Mass listed on the Classic 99 playlist from that date. While the rest of the Mass/ballad refers to God in masculine language, the Conclusion differs:

They say God loved the World so dear She set aside her crown And cloaked herself in human shape; They say that she came down, And dwelt awhile among us here. She came down

A copy of the lyrics can be found at The PuritanBoard. If you start reading at the beginning, you may not be able to make it to the Conclusion. For example, the "Credo" has three stanzas but certainly isn't Trinitarian. If you think that an error in transcription may have been made in the conclusion, check out the Mass at Clarion Records. It includes the MP3 for the Conclusion (click #12 when you get there). You clearly hear the vocalist sing "she" and "her."

I'll return you to the author of the email for a final question and comment: "How does the airing of such material fit with the mission and values of The Lutheran Church — Missouri Synod? Such programming contrasts markedly with what one could hear on Issues, Etc." Can I get an "Amen"?

So, how many (responsible) pastors out there put a "piece" in the worship service or a item on the congregation's newsletter or web page without any idea of of what the thing actually says? How many (employed) corporate officers put out something for public consumption without thoroughly vetting the content beforehand?